I Must Not Chase the Boys
by Kawaii Neko Yokai
Summary: Catrina is just your average tomboy. The loves of her life were simple: Quidditch, denim, and a secret passion for strawberries. But then she finds herself looking at a one of her best friends as more than a friend. Can Cat put aside her masculine attitud
1. Cat's Dilemma

KNY: Hiya all! KNY here bringing you my very first attempt at a Harry Potter fanfic, so please be gentle!

Disclaimer: Until my plans for world domination succeed, I sadly do not own Harry Potter.

I Must Not Chase the Boys

In a land far, far away, a lone knight bravely climbed the mountain to the dragon's keep. Atop his mighty steed, the brave youth was a sight to behold. He was to rescue the fair golden-haired princess from the great, fire-breathing monster and claim her as his bride. He would prove his love for her through his skill and bravery…

Yeah, yeah, warm fuzzies all around.

Moving on to our present tale, not in some far away kingdom under a brilliant blue sky, but rather in the rain-soaked, fog-bound swamp we call England. More specifically, at a very special school of magic…

Two young wizards sat under an old, knotted willow in an attempt to keep from getting any further soaked from the late autumn downpour of rain.

"When is she going to get here?!" the redhead muttered irritably for only the fourteenth time in the past six minutes.

"I don't know, okay?!" His green-eyed companion was in no better mood.

"Okay, geeze! You don't have to bite my head off, Harry! Sheesh…" The redhead sighed and stared out towards the lake. "I don't think she's going to come."

The one called Harry sifted to try to find a dryer spot under the overhead branches. A small trickle of water ran down his nose. "She'll come, Ron. You know she'd never back down from a fight."

"I suppose you're right- Ack!" Ron was cut short as a large, wet ball of mud collided with the side of his head. Harry suffered the same fate.

"You blokes really need to pay more attention." The boys pulled their bodies out of the slippery ground to glare at their smirking assailant.

"Yeah, yeah, Cat. Cheap shot," Ron grumbled as he tried to get mud out of his ear.

"Glad you could make it, Cat," Harry said, "Thought you'd decided to act like a _girl_ and stay out of the rain." The teasing note in his voice made the one now identified as Cat smack him again with another mud ball.

"Come on, Potter," Cat taunted, "Get up and fight like a man!"

"Oh, coming from you that means a whole lot!"

"Come on, ya pansy!" And with that, the biggest, messiest mud-fight Hogwarts had ever seen commenced.

Hermione looked outside the window at her friends viciously attacking each other with mud balls and shook her head. Those three could be so childish some days. She far preferred the comfort of a roaring fire and a good book on a day like this.

Then her wandering gaze landed on the figure in worn blue jeans assaulting the boys with taunts accompanied by flying mud balls, and grinned wryly. If anyone had been born the wrong gender, it was Cat. Well, her full name was Catrina Rosaleane Skyler, but several people had learned the hard way not to call her that. Harry and Ron included. She laughed in remembrance of the looks on their faces after said incident. Ron had a nice shiner for two weeks, and Harry had been a multitude of pretty colors: blue, black, purple, yellow, red…

When they had first met about three months ago, Cat had been lounging against one of the outside walls, watching them play Quidditch against the Slytherins. They won of course, and the Slytherin players were, well… if Hermione used such words, she would have described them as pissed.

Anyway, some of the players had decided to try to take their frustrations out her. They cornered her behind the stadium after game-time, and Cat caught them.

_"Okay you filthy, mudblood," Marcus hissed, "Now you're going to pay for your friends' attitudes!"_

_"Don't you think it's kind of rude to pick on a girl half your size, you cowards?" Cat's cool voice broke through the stillness of the evening air, a faded denim cap over her head._

_"Look, buddy," one of the Slytherins said, mistaking Cat for a boy. "Just walk away and forget what you saw here, or maybe we'll just pick on you instead!"_

_Cat just yawned boredly and replied, "Sounds like you're P.O'd because you lost."_

_"Watch your mouth, kid!" one of the others yelled._

_"I do wish you'd stop making your inferiority complex my problem." Throughout this entire exchange, Cat continued to look uninterested, as if this lot was far below her._

_"That's it!" a heavy-set boy said as he and several others advanced on her, Marcus among them. He threw a punch right at her head, intending to bash in her skull, but she grabbed his wrist and kicked his foot out from underneath him. After that, she simply let momentum and gravity work its magic._

_Then, she dodged another boy's kick and nailed him in the jaw with a hard right hook, knocking out several teeth in the process._

_A few seconds later, all but two boys were on the ground, the lucky ones unconscious, the others too wounded to fight anymore. One of the remaining boys had managed to pull out his wand and pointed it at her._

_"W-Winkid-" he started to stammer._

_Cat rolled her eyes and pulled out her own wand._

_"Accio wand!" she cried, and the boy's wand came flying towards her where she deftly caught it. Then she calmly walked over and with the grace with which she had handled the whole fight, punched him in the chest._

_After he fell, she turned to the last one and coolly said, "Is there anything you would like to add?" _

_The boy shook his head frantically, and stared at her as if she was going to eat him._

_She smiled at him, then, and not a friendly one. "Then would you please go get a teacher and politely inform them of what these boys were doing?"_

_If he nodded any harder his head was likely to snap clear off his neck._

_"Good boy," she said, showing her teeth in a predator's grin. The boy got up as fast as he could, stumbling in his rush a few times, and bolted to the castle._

_Then she turned to Hermione who had watched the proceedings silently, eyes wide with a strange combination of awe, fear, and utter fascination. "Are you all right?"_

_Hermione stared at Cat as if she was speaking another language before responding, "Y-yes."_

_"Well that's good, as long as you're okay." Cat turned to walk away when Harry and Ron came tearing around the corner, frantically searching for Hermione who had been missing for nearly twenty minutes._

_"Moine!" Ron cried followed a breath later by Harry's "Where have you been?! Are you okay?!" Then they caught sight of the fallen Slytherin boys and Cat standing there watching them with an expression of debating whether to fight or walk away._

_"You!" Ron yelled, "Did you hurt Hermione?!" Without waiting for an answer, the enraged boy charged her, and promptly met the ground, Cat balancing lightly on his back._

_Harry was about to attack also, but as he pulled out his wand, Hermione grabbed his arm._

_"Don't! She saved me!"_

_"I'm going to let you up now," Cat said to Ron, who was still getting acquainted with the dirt. "Will you stop trying to get yourself killed and ask your friend what happened?"_

And after that the four of them had been inseparable. As it turned out, Cat was a recent addition to the school. She had been privately tutored for the past five years by her parents and her godfather, Dumbledore. This little tidbit of information, as well as her performance regarding her defense of Hermione, instantly integrated her in the trio.

Anyway, Cat was a total tomboy. Not once had any of them even seen her hair color as it was always kept underneath some kind of hat. Hermione glanced out the window at her again. If only she showed some sign of being a normal girl…

Later the three mud-warriors headed back to the Gryffindor Common room, all of them thoroughly plastered from head to toe with thick, gooey mud, and laughing loud enough to wake the dead. The filthy trio attracted only a few stares from their fellow Gryffindors. This kind of thing was commonplace around there.

"Well, I suppose this is where we part company, eh?" Cat said when the reached the division between the boys' and girls' dormitories.

"Yeah. Unless you'd rather come with us?"

"Ron!" Harry clouted his friend over the head.

"I didn't mean it like that!" Ron protested. "It's just, Cat's more guy than girl, ya know?"

"You've got a point, Ron, but still, just because she's not a _girl_ girl doesn't mean you can go inviting her up to men's territory."

Cat gave a half grin and shook her head. "Thanks for the offer, Ron, but no. I gotta go. See you guys at breakfast." And with a small wave, she turned and walked up the stone stairwell to her rooms, occasionally shedding clumps of dried mud.

When she reached the girls' dorms, she found she was alone. Well, that wasn't unexpected; most of the others were socializing out in the common room as it was still fairly early in the evening.

She pulled off her old windbreaker and flopped on her bed, heedless of the dirt smearing on her comforter. After a few minutes, she got up and headed to the bathroom.

Once there, she examined herself in the mirror, frowning at her ragged appearance. She glanced towards the door, making sure it was locked, and tugged her ragged denim cap off her head. Bright red hair fell down her back like a waterfall of flame, a single curl straying across her cheek. She loved her hair. It was the one feature about herself that she liked. Heh. That would give those boys a chuckle, knowing that Cat, the she-male, actually cared about her hair.

She shook her head, causing her hair to bounce and wave as if it had a life of its own. That was silly. Like she cared what they thought about the way she looked…

Who was she fooling? She cared all too much, despite their belief of the contrary. She stared at the girl in the mirror and sighed, watching her reflection's blue eyes mirror her own depression.

She began to unbutton her second-hand plaid men's shirt, revealing soft, white cloth beneath. Cat glanced at the binding, knowing what was coming next. She began unwinding the cloth and let out an audible sigh of relief as her breasts came free. She had originally started binding her breasts because they got in the way of her rough-housing with the guys and playing Quidditch. Now she did so because it would be too awkward to explain why she stopped. Besides, she hated her breasts; they were too big.

She finished undressing and scrutinized herself again. Her eyes were too large and her mouth was too wide. Even her legs were too long and her jeans were loose around slender hips. There was a smudge of mud on her left cheekbone, making her look like some street urchin.

All in all, her appearance was like some twisted combination between a girl and boy. As if God simply made a mistake in choosing her gender. She wasn't female enough to be a girl, and not male enough to be a boy.

'I'm an _It_,' she thought bitterly. 'Not a boy, not a girl, but an _it_.'

Harry's words echoed painfully through her head as she cleaned up. _"Just because she's not a girl girl-"_

Cat bit back tears as she got into a big shirt and a pair of boys' boxers, readying herself for bed. She wished she had been born a boy. Then she wouldn't have these confusing feelings all of a sudden, or at least that she had gotten them when all the other girls did. She had caught herself several times that week stealing glances at Harry out of the corner of her eye, or thinking how beautiful his eyes were. Harry was her best friend!

She glanced towards her unfinished homework. She still had a two parchment essay on moonstones to complete for potions the next day.

"Oh bugger this!" she muttered, ignoring the looming assignment in favor of the sweet oblivion of sleep…

KNY: Soooooooo... whatcha think?

Now I have two ideas for this story:

1. Cat x Harry. I continue with this cute little crush idea, with plenty of twists, turns, and botched attempts at matchmaking. In this one, Draco will be portrayed as more of a villian.

2. Cat x Draco. Cat needs help regarding her crush on Harry. Who is the best at understanding the male mind? The one guy she can't stand: Draco Malfoy. Sort of a love/hate thing in the beginning.

3. Both. Write two storylines in one story and let the reader choose.

4. It sucks. I think you should trash it. I also have a chipmunk up my ass.

Please review!


	2. Yes, There IS a Girl In There!

KNY: Hi all!! Sorry for the wait, I had writer's block. Anyhoo, I know now what I'm going to do regarding this story. For now it's leaning towards Cat X Harry, but it IS still open for discussion. If I have a significant division, I'll write an alternate ending for each pairing, okay?

Disclaimer:

KNY: muttering over pot Double double, toil and trouble. Fire burn and cauldren bubble! bright flash

KNY: face is covered in soot OO

Ron: Nope, you still don't own Harry Potter.

KNY: Damn...

Hermione: KNY! This is a kid's show!

KNY: raises eyebrow and points to story rating No it isn't.

Hermione: Oh.

* * *

I Must Not Chase the Boys

Chapter 2: Yes, there IS a girl in there!

The next morning, as she walked in the Great Hall for breakfast, it was crowded as usual. Sighing, she attempted to squeeze through, and tried to make her way to the Gryffindor table.

She had almost reached her destination when someone tapped her shoulder. She sucked in her breath, ready to tell them off when she saw that it was Harry.

"'Ello there Harry."

"Hey Cat," Harry smirked, his green eyes light with humor. He looked so nice at the moment she actually gave a thought to her appearance. She had hidden her hair in the witch's cap at the moment, and with her light freckles somehow almost making her look like a boy. She wore her black uniform robe, but with her loose fitting gray sweater, tie, and pants no curves could be seen at all.

'Stop it,' she scolded herself, 'Besides, what did you expect when you're wearing the boy's uniform?' and then realized that Harry had been speaking to her.

"Oh what?"

He rolled his eyes, "I said, why weren't you at dinner last night?"

Cat shrugged, "Wasn't hungry." The two of them sat by Ron and Hermione.

For the rest of breakfast, the five of them ate in silence. Occasionally, Cat stole glances at Harry with owlish eyes. Just as she was about to look at him again, she caught herself, and shook her head. Since when did these thoughts of him enter her mind?

Laughing, she thought, 'It's Harry, my best friend!'

Unfortunately, the same thought still lingered on her mind when it was Potions class. She saw him talking to Ron and Hermione, he turned to her, smiled, and motioned for her to sit at his table. It seemed as if the world shook, and she stopped and looked at him as she never did before.

Harry was good looking. His raven black hair fell over his eyes, and she felt her hands itching to push it away. He was tall and lean, he had sparkling emerald eyes, a charming smile, and he bore another scar on his cheek from their first fight. (A/N: Haha! XD I couldn't resist! Don't worry I love Harry though!)

Why hadn't she noticed this before? When other girls swooned on how gorgeous he was, she thought of them as crazy blind females. But now…but now, she saw him as they did.

Cat walked over, and took the seat next to him. Professor Snape began to lecture on a color changing potion that would last for three days, but she wasn't paying attention.

"Cat."

Her head turned, and was staring into Harry's eyes. She blushed, and there was no way she could stop it.

"Huh?"

"We're Potions partners, in case you weren't paying—", He really wasn't sure of what to say. Was Cat, the she-male checking him out? "Cat…"

She had already run off to get the supplies for the potion. He shook his head, laughing at his thoughts. Cat, she wasn't that type of girl. She was so much like a guy, it would be impossible for her to be checking him out at the moment. She wasn't a lesbian or anything but Cat was Cat. And she would not be checking anyone out at the moment.

(Saturday)

Cat stared at the setting sun, sighing in content. Only one more hour until she had to be back in the castle. But the sky looked so amazing at the moment; a pink cloak covered the sky. The sun, glowing its orange color, and the clouds, an amazing purple. The sight was amazing, she decided. Besides, it took her thoughts off Harry for a while.

She lay back onto the grass and sighed. She really couldn't understand herself lately; she was seeing Harry in a light she didn't want to. This morning, she even caught herself almost walking out with her hair down, again! Luckily nobody saw.

A pang hit her stomach and she realized that there was really a female under all of the masculinity of her clothing, of her appearance. And, it was just showing up. She banged her fists on the ground. Why couldn't it have happened when all of the normal girls were becoming girls? Why couldn't she have been feeling all of these disturbing feelings then?

A groan stirred her from her thoughts, causing her to shoot up from the ground. She looked in the direction of the noise, thinking it was an intruder. Then she remembered idiots DID make out here at times, and she almost laughed until she saw who it was.

It was Harry and some girl from school. They were latched onto each other like Velcro, kissing and hugging and groaning. A noticeable flush stained her cheeks as she watched them. Instead of being repulsed she was somehow wishing that she were the one lip locked with him under the starry night. She almost fainted at her thoughts alone.

'Ugh! What is happening to me?' She got up quickly and hid behind a tree. She leaned back against the other side of the tree trunk so that she couldn't see them and they couldn't see her.

Cat was mortified to say the least. At her thoughts and at her reaction. What was the world coming to when Catrina Skyler wanted to be kissed? And that small female part of her answered. It was the longing that she had always had, yet never acknowledged. She banged her head against the tree in frustration and admitted begrudgingly that her conscience was right.

_But how in the world is a she-male going to reform back into the female she was born as?_ She thought miserably.

It was Sunday again. Cat got out of bed, groggy from the little sleep she had gotten the night before. Her mind was clouded with thoughts of him; there was no room for sleep. She looked at the clock, and then jumped out of bed when she saw she only had 10 minutes until the Quidditch match started.

Cat ran into the bathroom, grabbed her toothbrush and brushed her teeth as she jumped in the shower. Five minutes later, she was out of the shower, dragging on her uniform and a rubber band. In her hurry she grabbed the first cap that was acceptable for playing, and she had seen on her shelf, then raced out of the door.

She reached the locker room out of breath and red and pissed as ever. She was definitely ready to play today. The guys were gathered around, waiting to see what Alicia had to say.

"Okay, all I have to say is…lets show those Slytherin slime balls how we play!"

Okay, I am REALLY bad at imaging a Quidditch scene, let alone write one, so you can think it up yourself. Heh.

It was five minutes after everyone had left the field, and only Harry, Ron, and her were out. They were still cheering, and tackling each other, giving victory noogies on the head.

Harry was sneaking up behind Cat and suddenly, out of nowhere, her hat flew off of her head.

"Shit," she said to the wind furiously but ran anyways. Harry tackled her.

They were both rolling on the ground and she covered her head. Harry was on top of her and she stared into his fathomless green eyes, her hair fanned around her head. He looked so beautiful at that moment, her heart ached. Time seemed to stop and she was drawn into the depth of his eyes. Harry's face inched towards hers, then, like the suddenness of the contact, he backed away. He grinned, but it didn't reach his eyes.

"Nice hair." He jumped off of her and headed over to Ron and Hermione who were waiting in the stands.

Cat was still in shock, lying on the ground. Was he going to kiss her or something? Why did he move in like that? So many questions. She saw Ron hovering above her, smiling.

"I've never seen you with so much hair, Cat." He held out a hand and helped her up. Cat laughed, trying to ease the tension in her stomach.

"Yeah, yeah. Where's my hat?" Ron handed it to her, and she headed toward the locker room.

When she entered, she didn't notice Harry following her.

"Hey Cat."

Cat turned around, shocked. She had previously started to unbutton the top part of the uniform, and it was showing the binding around her breasts. Harry was staring at the cloth in shock. Astonishment was written into his features as he stared her down. Her hat had fallen off, and here she was, the Cat that she had hidden so many times.

She glared at Harry, yanking her robe and walked past him. She started to leave as his hand snaked around her wrist.

"Cat. Are you okay?"

She gathered her courage and faced him. Bewilderment was written for everyone to see in his emerald eyes.

"Yes." She blushed, she couldn't help it.

"Why is there binding over your… um… breasts?" Harry almost choked on the words. He never imagined Cat with breasts, let along bound ones.

"Umm… It's none of your business."

"Isn't that unhealthy Cat? I mean..." He trailed off.

She looked away. "I guess it's not healthy. It's just that I look like some kind of horse without it bound. I hate it because they bounce when I run, even if I'm wearing a sports bra, and they…" her broke off appalled at herself. Why was she telling him this?

Without warning, Harry doubled over into hysterical laughter. He didn't know if he was mental or if the situation was really that funny. But something struck a cord that started him laughing and he couldn't stop.

Cat blushed in anger and embarrassment. "Shut the hell up you jerk. Just shut it. I swear I'll—I'll—"

He fell on the ground, gasping for breath.

"I'll kill you, you arrogant jerk. You don't know anything. I'll hex you. I'll—"

"Cat-," He finally managed to say though his peals of laughter. "I don't know why it's so funny so if you will excuse me, I think I'll just be heading back to the field." He laughed even harder.

A red haze clouded her vision and she tackled him, now she was furious. Harry's laughter quickly stopped. He stared at Cat who was over him, glaring at him with her half buttoned shirt. He didn't think this was funny anymore.

"Cat, I think you better get off of me."

"Oh yeah?" She lifted an eyebrow in mockery.

"Yes. Or else."

"Or else what?"

Cat didn't see it coming. Harry's hand reached for the binding across her breasts and pulled it off. Mortified, she jumped off of him.

"That." He said, but his eyes were focused on her breasts. Now with no binding, they were much larger than he had expected. In fact, he had never even imagined she had breasts so seeing them in the plain white bra was shocking enough.

She blushed and buttoned up her shirt. "I told you, I'm a cow." She looked away, into the distance.

"Cat, you're definitely not a cow."

She turned sharply. His voice was different. It was deeper somehow and it sent delicious chills down her spine.

"You know what? I'm leaving Harry. I don't even know why you came here." Cat headed out the door.

"Wait." Harry paused. "I wanted to… apologize. About that incident on the field. I'm sorry, I mean I was… well I just wanted to say sorry."

She blushed again, scolded herself for it, and then smiled up at him. "I know my hair was probably some kind of shock but its okay Harry. You didn't do anything but tackle me."

And with that, she walked back to the castle. Harry stared after her wondering about this new Cat he was seeing, and about the changes he was seeing in himself. He wasn't quite sure how everything was adding up and he wasn't up to thinking about it at the moment.

* * *

KNY: Well, that's about it for this chapter!

Replies to Reviews:

HarmonyHanyou- Thank you so much!

Destiny- Well I hope you approve. Malfoy will show up soon.

Kat O'Leary- Thanks! I honestly think I can make this work without being too cliche, but if I start to lean that way, please tell me. I try my best to be original.

Kiki the Hyperactive Ferret- Here ya go! mutters even though you've already read it...


	3. Please Someone Help me

KNY: Again, late chapter! I actually had this one done _ahead_ of schedule for once, but school got in the way and then and million and two other things happened, and I just haven't found the time to post this. So without further ado, I present…

* * *

I Must Not Chase the Boys

Chapter Three: Please, Someone Help Me…

Cat sighed, and then braced herself for the packed hallway, then debated to herself: To eat or not to eat, that was the question. She sighed, yet again; she didn't need to eat this lunch. She wasn't that hungry and her stomach churned every time she came in proximity with Harry.

She decided to wander around the school. She was wearing blue shorts and a white t-shirt, her hat was dark blue. Harry was on her mind again. She was startled when she saw him from the bench that she sat on. He was talking to this gorgeous redhead. Cat studied the girl and felt a pang of envy that she was so pretty. Even more pangs of jealousy hit her as she saw the girl curl around Harry like a snake. They were walking towards the castle. A lump formed in her throat; she wanted to cry, wanted to make herself become the woman she was born to be. But she didn't know how to do it.

She lay back on the bench, still watching. As if he had felt her staring, Harry turned in her direction. She blushed and looked up at the sky. Things were all going wrong. She didn't know what to do.

A few moments later, Harry came up to her; she pretended not to see him. "Cat."

She turned, then smiled but it didn't reach her eyes. "Yes?"

He looked like he was going to ask her something different but instead he said, "Can you scoot over so I can sit?"

She sat up and scooted to the side. When he sat down, she leaned on his shoulder and closed her eyes.

Harry was startled. Her strawberry scent invaded his senses and she didn't feel very male with her head resting on his shoulder.

"We've known each other for a while right?"

Cat yawned. "Yes. Harry, can I ask you a question?"

"Sure, but err... yeah go ahead."

She yawned again. "Promise not to laugh?"

"Just ask the damn question Cat, so I can get on with what I wanted to say before I forget."

She snuggled in closer, feeling comforted by his masculine frame. She wanted to lie like this forever. But forever could only last so long. She sighed. "Do you think my nose is too big?"

Harry choked on air. He coughed, took a deep breath, and looked at her. "What!"

Cat, unfazed, repeated the question.

"What kind of question is that?"

"Forget it okay?" She moved away from him and was about to stand up when he pushed her back down.

"Why would she want to know anyways?" He ran a frustrated hand through his raven locks. "Cat, you're getting stranger every day. I don't know what is happening to you." His voice was a bit panicked and she fought tears. The words were harmless but they hurt anyways.

Cat let anger take the place of her sadness. "I said forget it!" She jumped off the bench and started running. What a fool she was to think she would get an honest opinion from him! She wanted to cry, she wanted to yell, and she wanted to get the hell away from him so that she didn't have to be tempted with all of these female thoughts. He could have just given her a straight answer. But he had to delve, Harry the delver. Never let anything sit. DELVE, DELVE, AND DELVE!

She sighed in defeat. He didn't think of her as a girl so he couldn't form an opinion on her nose. It was probably like Ron asking if his outfit made him look fat! She was just another guy to him. He would never look at her the way he looked at other girls like that redhead he was curled up with. She was all curves and beautiful.

'Sounlike the dowdy cow of myself.'

She stopped running when she reached the tree on the other side of lake. And she couldn't prevent the lonely tear from falling down her face. She didn't attempt to wipe it away.

"Cat, wait!" She heard Harry say, unexpectedly close. He sounded regretful, bewildered. She felt guilty but angered at the same time; she sank down under the tree, resting her head on her knees.

"Cat," He reached the tree, and then sat beside her. His voice was gentle and she didn't want to hear it. Another tear fell down her face; she sniffed then held her breath, not wanting him to see her cry.

Harry, with a gentle hand, lifted her face from her knees and stared wildly at the tears that were there. His stomach churned in response for he truly didn't know what was happening. He had never seen her cry so… easily before, and yet, it might not have been for the reasons that he was thinking.

But she was so unpredictable these days, not the same Cat who had come to him saying that she could spit not only as well as him but further.

This was some stranger that he had never seen. And it was scaring to him death that she had changed without him noticing a thing.

He wanted to see her, as she was now. He studied her seeing her trying to stop herself from crying. Her eyes, blue and beautiful, shone with unshed tears. The nose in question, that had brought this to this, was perfect for her face, not too big or too small or with a pointy edge. Her lips were very soft and… kissable.

Kissable! What was he doing? He was mortified at the fact that he was just now checking out his best friend. She was Cat, no matter how weird she started to act. There was no changing that fact and he couldn't change anything unless he found out what was the cause of this stranger in his best friend's place. And her lips weren't kissable.

"Harry, could you leave me alone? Please…" Her voice was surprisingly fragile and Harry couldn't bear it.

"What's with you Cat? You're acting so strange I almost don't recognize you! What happened to Cat, my best friend?" He shouted, furiously.

"She's still there Harry. She's there alright and she's changing because she can't stand what she is—" shocked at what she said and furious beyond belief Cat closed her mouth. "Just leave me the fuck alone Harry. I'm leaving and you better not follow me."

She pushed past him and he grabbed her wrist. She turned around, her eyes bright with anger and some other feeling Harry didn't—couldn't, recognize. He panicked.

"Is that how you're going to handle this Cat? You're just going to walk away? Just leave like a wimpy little girl?" His eyes darkened to a dangerous level filled with all compassing fury. "Then leave." His voice was low and quiet, bordering scary and Cat was startled to realize the depths of his rage.

"I will. I will leave like a wimpy little girl because now a days, you're not the only who can't recognize me. I can't recognize myself," Cat whispered in an almost inaudible voice; then turned and walked away.

Harry stared after her, confused and hurt. Although, he didn't know why, he was more concerned with Cat than his other friends, and feeling more for her than he'd ever felt about anyone. He wouldn't think about that now.

He ran a frustrated hand through his hair, staring blankly into the distance under the big willow tree.

Cat paced around her dorm, she was alone yet again. What was she going to do?

Sighing, she slipped her feet into some slippers and walked out. Glancing at her watch, she saw it was 8:15. As she headed down the steps, she hesitated. How was she going to make this all better? Never in her life had she hesitated to see her best friend. But now…but now it was all complicated.

It was as if two and two made five, and the grass was blue and the sky was purple. Sighing, she went down the stairs, in baggy jeans and a London Lethifoulds jersey, and she carried her broom. "Hey, Ron."

Said Weasley looked up. "Yeah, Cat?"

"Where's Harry?" She clutched her Firebolt tightly.

"You just missed him."

She sighed and gave Ron a small smile and walked out the Common Room and toward the Quidditch pitch.

Where was Harry? Was he out snogging a girl senseless? Closing her eyes, she forced that picture out of her mind.

Flying. That's what she needed to do!

'That always clears my mind,' she thought.

There was no one else when she arrived. Perfect, plenty of space.

Cat mounted her broom, and she was off. It was like sheer bliss, the wind blowing in her hair, she felt free. None of her troubles, no thoughts of Harry entered her mind as she did all sorts of tricks. After a while, she got tired of it, and went down.

She almost had a heart attack when she saw who was blocking the doorway. There he was, the cause of all her confusion.

Harry was dressed in all black, making him look wild, dangerous and…sexy?

'Stop it,' she thought. 'Harry is NOT sexy.'

He stood there, staring as if in a trance. His gorgeous emerald eyes staring right through her. She felt her chest well up.

"When did you get here?"

Harry remained silent as he continued staring. She felt a pang of uneasiness. What was he doing? What was he staring at?

"What's with you?" She was beyond nervous, and was squirming beneath his gaze.

"How long have we been friends, Cat?" He whispered quietly. His voice was silky smooth, a caress… and she wanted to revel in it.

She tilted her head, confused. "What does this have to do with anything?"

"We've been friends for three months. You were fifteen, I had just turned sixteen. We were best friends, we understood each other. You helped me come to grips with my Godfather's death…"

She felt her heart shatter at the word, 'were'. "We—we still are best friends, Harry… you just have to give me a little time. I need time to…to…settle…"

Harry's eyes gleamed in the moonlight. They looked darker than usual, they held determination. That was the anger she could see in its depths. "For the first time ever, you walked out on a fight. I wanted to know what you were thinking but you closed off from me. How is that being a friend, Catrina?"

She cringed at the use of her real name.

"Harry." She began, her voice was breaking. "I—I couldn't, I can't explain. No, not right now. It's not the time. Come on, I can't take this in any other way. It's just- oh, please. I'm sorry alright. Just leave it be for right now."

She was just as determined at the moment for him to leave it alone as he was to get everything cleared.

"I'll think about it." That was all he said. He departed as slick as he entered. She stood there for some moments, just staring and wondering just how she would come around to telling him.

What would she say? "Harry I love you more than a best friend and I think I've been feeling this way all of my life."? She just didn't know what to do anymore.

She stared up at the moon and a tear slid unbidden down her cheek. "Please, someone help me…"

"Is she the one? The one sweet on Potter?"

"Yes, sir!"

"Good." Draco Malfoy watched the sorrowful redhead exit the Quidditch field like a wolf sighting his prey. He turned to his two flunkies, Crabbe and Goyle. "Good work you two. I do wonder though," he raised a pale eyebrow, "when did you guys become so good at reading people?"

The two big dopes looked sheepish.

"Uh, we didn't," Crabbe admitted. "We heard Granger and a few Gryffindor girls talking about it."

"I see." Malfoy smirked at Cat's retreating back. "This will be fun…"

* * *

KNY: Ooooooooooo! Can anyone else sense trouble on the horizon? I wonder what will happen!

Ron: Aren't you supposed to know that? Since you're the author and all?

KNY: I am?

Ron: Yeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeees…

KNY: Then we may have a problem… **sweatdrops**

Hermione: Great, just great, KNY.

KNY: How was I supposed to know?

Everyone: **sighs in frustration**

KNY: What? Anyhoo, quick question. Do people prefer one long chapter about once a month, or a shorter chapter more frequently updated? I don't want to lose reviewers due to too long a wait between chapters…

Replies to Reviews:

**Joey Potter- **Thank you so much! The title will come into play more later. **Hint hint, nudge nudge. **I see a little bit of myself in Cat in the whole 'Guys-don't-notice-me' sorta thing, but I'm more the quiet bookish girl who people just don't notice rather than a classic tomboy. One of my friends is a total tomboy, though, so I got some of Cat's masculine attitude from her.

**Kat O'Leary- **Thank you soooooo much! I try to capture emotion and detail in my writing as much as I can. And next time I'll try to write a Qudditch scene since you requested it. Just don't blame me if it sucks! **Smiles and sweatdrops.** I will give it my best though!

**Kiki**- Thanks Kiki! Here's the update that you _haven't _read! Ha!


	4. What's the Catch?

KNY: Once more, school, Spanish homework, and life get in the way of me updating. I hope this makes it up to you. I'll try to get the next chapter out ASAP.

Note: The scenes with Malfoy do NOT mean the pairing is Cat/Malfoy. Unless I get a review requesting a Cat/Malfoy option, the pairing is officially Cat/Harry!

Cat/Harry fans: **Cheer**

* * *

IMNCTB chapter 4: What's the Catch? 

Cat walked across the cobblestone courtyard, throat tight with unshed tears. The salty liquid pricked at her eyes as the teardrops tried to escape, but she swallowed hard and forced them back. She'd be damned before she'd cry again over something that stupid!

She glanced at her watch; it read 9:00. She had to hurry back to the dorm; it was already past the curfew hour, and she didn't want to get caught sneaking around after hours.

Cat turned her gaze to the star-filled sky, a lump attempting to form in her throat. What was wrong with her? She would never have cried over something that insignificant last month…

Footsteps echoing on the walkway brought her back from her thoughts. Cat inhaled sharply and frantically looked around for a place to hide.

"Who do you think we'll catch this time, Mrs. Norris?"

'Oh no! Filch!' Cat's blue eyes searched even harder for a hiding place. The footsteps came closer.

"In here!" a voice hissed as an arm snaked around her waist and pulled her into the shadowed corridor.

Cat didn't dare make a sound. Her heart pounded in her chest and her nose was buried in her savior's chest. She heard Filch's footsteps stop as he looked around. Her breath froze in her lungs as the footsteps headed in their direction, when the sound suddenly stopped for a moment, then resumed in the opposite hallway.

She waited a few minutes after Filch's footsteps had faded from hearing before she pulled away. She let out a sigh of relief, and turned to face her rescuer.

"Thank you so much, I-" She stopped mid sentence as she met a pair of ice-blue eyes. She stepped back as her savior stepped out of the shadow into the moonlight.

"Draco Malfoy!"

"Yes. Surprised, Gryffindor?" the Slytherin Prince raised a slender eyebrow. His eyes glinted as sharp and clear as the stars above their heads while his white-blonde hair gleamed silver in the moonlight.

Cat couldn't believe it. Why would he save her from Filch? He made it very clear he hated all Gryffindors, and though she hadn't spoken personally with him very often, she had witnessed several of his and Harry's altercations.

Their first encounter had gone something like this:

_It was in the hallway during the first week of school. Cat had heard many things about the Slytherin boy, little of them good._

_"Hello Potty, Weasel, Mudblood," he sneered at them on their way to potions._

_Cat had been rather offended at his treatment of her friends. She responded in a fake hurt voice. "No clever nickname for me? Why I'm hurt, Malfoy!"_

_"Shut it Skyler, I'm not in the mood to deal with psycho Gryffindor chicks right now" he hissed._

_  
"The psycho Gryffindor chick, huh? I like it Malfoy! Hey, can I call you the Slytherin asshole!" she asked in mock enthusiasm._

It had pretty much gone downhill from there.

"Of course I'm surprised! Why would you save me? Is this some sort of trick?" Cat recovered enough from her surprise to narrow her eyes suspiciously at the green-clad teenager before her. You never knew what to expect from Malfoy.

"What? Why so suspicious? Isn't it chivalrous to aid a lady in need?" His voice was carefully sweet and innocent as he watched her for a reaction.

Cat snorted in a most un-ladylike fashion. "First of all, I am not some damsel in distress," she said, sapphire eyes glinting dangerously. "Secondly, suspicious? Me? Why would I be? I mean, our houses have _such_ a good relationship." Her voice dripped sarcasm. To her surprise, the serpent laughed, a light, musical sound.

"Oh, you are most amusing, Miss…?"

'Figures. He can't even remember my name. Men!' "Skyler. Catrina Skyler."

"Miss Catrina," he said, sounding her name out on his tongue, tasting the word. "Lovely name."

"Cut the crap, Malfoy," she snapped, fed up with his niceties. "What do you want?"

He brought a hand to his chest, face expressing mock hurt. "You wound me, lady. I merely wished to assist a fellow classmate."

"I DIDN'T need your help, Mr. Malfoy."

"Of course, I didn't mean to imply that, I simply was passing by and thought that by helping you, it would make your escape easier. Besides, if Filch hadn't have heard you, he probably would have found me. You alerted me to his presence."

Cat considered this for a moment. He had a point.

"All right, sorry for being such a bitch, Malfoy," she said. "You didn't do anything wrong, I apologize for snapping at you." She gave him a nod and began walking towards her dormitory.

"Yes, I supposed you have reason for being a bit edgy right now," his voice said beside her.

Cat looked at him, startled. Then her eyes narrowed into vicious slits. "What do you mean by that, Malfoy?" she asked, guard immediately back up.

"I saw your exchange with Potter," he answered, voice soft.

Cat inhaled sharply, her heart pounding in her chest. "I-I don't know what you're talking about."

"You're a horrid liar, Miss Catrina." The famous Malfoy smirk was up. "You're sweet on him, aren't you?"

Cat could feel her face turn fifteen shades of red. When did the cool autumn evening suddenly get so hot? "N-No."

Malfoy chuckled. "What's the point in denying it so emphatically? We're the only ones here."

She had stopped walking, feet frozen to the ground, eyes staring fixedly at the small crack in the cobblestones. She closed her eyes and braced herself for the ridicule she knew was coming.

"Don't worry, I won't tell anyone."

_This_ surprised her even more than Malfoy's knowledge about her crush. "Why?" she asked, suspicious. It was unheard of for a Slytherin to be nice to a Gryffindor, much less Draco Malfoy, the "Slytherin Prince".

"Well, if you want the truth," he said, "I've seen you around school, and well, you're not bad for a Gryffindor. Especially a girl Gryffindor."

"Is this going somewhere?"

"I'm getting there!" They began walking again, his footsteps slapping the ground in a counterpoint to her own. "The big thing is, you're interesting, Miss Catrina. I've never seen anyone like you, and I'd like to learn more."

"Me?" Cat blinked. "What's so interesting about me?"

"What's so-?" Malfoy laughed. "You're a complete and total mystery to everyone at that bloody school. You have mud fights. You eat, walk, and talk like a boy. You punched out Marcus Flint! Hell, some people are wondering if you're even female!"

Cat felt the tears start to prick at her eyes again, but she viciously shoved them back.

"You're a girl, but you don't act a thing like the other girls." He glanced at her out of the corner of his eye. "At least, until now."

She stiffened as she felt his cool gaze on her once more. "So you're just going to shut up about the whole thing? What's this going to cost me, blackmail wise?"

"Blackmail?" He seemed stocked at the mere suggestion. "Why my dear Catrina, I would never stoop to something so odious and low!"

She stopped walking a stared at him. He fidgeted under her gaze. "Okay, okay fine! I would stoop that low and have done it on occasion. However, that is not the case this time. I wish to help you."

At this, Cat stopped walking entirely and just stared at him as if he had grown purple hair and started speaking in Portuguese.

"What?"

"You. Help?"

"You act like it's unheard of for me to help out!"

"You, a Slytherin, would help me, a Gryffindor."

"Yeeeeeeeeeeees," Malfoy said, rather testily at this point. "I can be nice you know!" His eyebrow twitched.

Cat blinked, recovering from her shocked state. "You can?"

"Arrrrgh!"

She laughed, clutching her stomach. "I was kidding that time, Malfoy."

The Slytherin Prince glared at her before asking, "May I continue?"

"Sure," Cat answered, whipping tears off laughter off her face.

"Thank you. As I was saying, I thought you could use some help regarding your problems with your um… feminity."

Cat raised an eyebrow. "Such as?"

"Such as how to dress," he answered, "Like a girl, I mean. I could show you how to walk, talk, act, and look like any girl you ever saw."

She blinked again. "How could you help me? I mean, it's not like you have any experience going shopping for dresses that make you look pretty. I least I hope not…" She eyed him warily.

"Of course not!" Malfoy snapped indignantly. "But I can give you a guy's point of view on women. Help you understand what guys like in a girl. I can transform you into the most spectacular girl at Hogwarts! You could have any date you wanted for the Christmas Ball, even Scarhead."

A rather happy, floaty feeling filled Cat's stomach at the thought of Harry looking at her like that other redhead. It would be wonderful.

"You can really do that?" she asked dreamily.

"Certainly."

Then Cat's fantasies came crashing down. "Why do all this? Just for some passing curiosity? Are you going to just turn me into the laughingstock of Hogwarts?"

Malfoy sighed and turned her towards him. "I already told you, Catrina," he whispered, "You are an enigma. The puzzle no one has been able to solve. I want to be the first."

"Can I trust you?" she asked, voice just as hushed and urgent. "Will you betray or humiliate me for a good laugh?"

He looked her square in the eyes, gaze deep and intense. "May I never play Quidditch again if I do."

"Deal, Malfoy."

"Draco. Deal, Catrina."

"It's Cat, please."

"Ah, but what is the point in having such a beautiful name if you don't use it? I'll see you tomorrow in the southwestern corridor. You're lessons begin after dinner."

"Fine… Draco."

He smiled at her, and walked away, leaving her at her dormitory. Cat smiled slightly. She might have a shot at winning Harry!

'Wait a minute… lessons?'

* * *

Malfoy smirked as he watched the Catrina girl enter her dormitory. 

"How'd it go?"

He turned to the redhead who Cat had seen Harry with earlier. "Perfect, of course. Really, Vivian, how could you doubt me?"

Vivian sighed and shook her head, short red locks of hair bouncing around her face. "I never did, Draco."

"How did it go with Potter? Is he sufficiently infatuated with you?"

"Yes…" Vivian replied softly. "I still don't like this, Draco. It's bloody low doing this kind of thing and-"

"When I _want_ your opinion I'll _ask_ for it, okay!" he snapped. "Just continue with Potter and keep me posted." And with that he stalked off, leaving the girl alone, her emerald eyes watching him sadly.

"Draco… Will you ever stop? Will you ever realize why I help you no matter what?"

For the second time that night, a heart-sick girl raised her head to the stars above and said, "Please, someone help me…"

* * *

KNY: Malfoy's plan begins! What is he planning to do to Harry and Cat's relationship? Ruin it? Make it completely awkward for the two to be in the same room? Or in some weird way, will he really help them come together? Either way, as you all know, the road to romance is never smooth! 

Ron: I knew he couldn't be helping out of the goodness of his heart!

Hermione: Malfoy has a heart?

KNY: Now, now, you two. Quit picking on Draco.

Ron: Okay…

KNY: R&R everybody!

**Replies to Reviews**

Lelyn Black- **turns bright red** T-Thank you! I really appreciate the Kudos and a review besides the "I like your story please update" reviews that I get every so often.

Miranda Potter- Kay, no Malfoy. I'm glad you're hooked! **smiles proudly**

Kat O'Leary- Thanks a bunch! If you think _that_ was emotional tension, then you're going to beat me later! **grins evilly** My empathies for the lack of boy attention. I still have had no boyfriend. 'Tis the life of the bookworm. **sighs** Oh well, it leaves us free to drool over people like Harry, eh? **smiles**


	5. Thoughts and the Evils of Morning

KNY: Wahoo! The next chapter has landed! Now SGS won't eat me! **Happy face**

HP Cast: Woo hoo…

KNY: Meanies…

Ron: Nah, you're just too sensitive.

KNY: You… you… **Gets up and then collapses back into chair** It's too hot to chase you around.

Harry: What's wrong, KNY?

KNY: My whole summer. At my dad's house, the air conditioner broke. THEN the washer. AND we had to get new tires for both cars. So of course, our family vacation is shot because we had to spend the money on replacing everything.

Hermione: Ouch.

KNY: I'm not done. THEN the air conditioner went out at my Mom's so I'm sitting here sweltering in the ALABAMA summer heat in the middle of freakin' JUNE! Okay, I'm done ranting.

Ron: That still doesn't excuse the late chapter.

KNY: Don't push me, Weasley. I worked hard on this chapter!

Ron: Yeah, well, it probably still sucks. I mean, I'm only in one little part!

KNY: That's because the readers like Harry better. Right Harry?

Harry: **Blushes** I wouldn't know…

Disclaimer: Albert Einstein once said "insanity is doing the exact same thing over and over and expecting different results" … I agree, so do we get the point? I don't own Harry Potter. I do, however, own Cat and this plotline.

I Must Not Chase the Boys

Chapter 5: Thoughts on a Quidditch Game and the Evils of Morning

Here comes the cliché beginning whenever morning so happens to arrive in a fanfic. Golden beams of sweet sunlight peeked up over the horizon, casting a soft light across a certain tomboy's bed. Oh so slowly, they inched toward her eyelids with the intent of giving her a gentle wake up call to greet the day. The beams reached her eyes, causing her to shriek and tumble out of bed, landing hard on the wood floor.

Okay so it wasn't as cliché as we thought but who can tell? Moving on, she jerked her head up, long red hair tangled together in the morning condition all women suffer from known, as bed-head. She blinked her sleep-fogged blue eyes several times in an attempt to clear her bleary vision.

Cat yawned, arms stretching toward the ceiling. It was then that she noticed something was amiss. She froze, listening hard. She heard nothing. That was bad. Where was everyone?

She stood up shakily and looked out the window. She saw quite a crowd gathering outside the Qudditch field. 'What's with the mob?' It was then that she remembered.

"We have a game today! Shiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiit!"

Doing the two-minute get together that only tomboys seem to be able to pull off, Cat ran out of her room, stuffing her hair into her hat as she ran.

"Sooooooooooooorry!" She yelled upon approaching the stadium.

"There you are!" her captain cried. "You're late."

"I-gasp-I know," Cat panted, her hands on her knees as she tried to regain her breath.

"As long as you got here. Okay people!" Alicia said, addressing the room. "The game begins in 15 minutes! Be ready!"

Cat sat on the bench with a soft _plop_ and let out an exaggerated gasp for air. Then, she heard the sound of someone entering the locker room. She opened one eye to see who had entered and wished she hadn't.

"Miss Chang," said Alicia, "Shouldn't you be with your team?"

"I merely came to wish the opposing team good luck." The intruder glanced at Cat and sniffed disdainfully. "They'll need it."

Enter Cho Chang, the Ravenclaw beauty queen of only 17. Cho seemed to live to pick on Cat since she didn't follow Cho's example of striving to the socially acceptable standards expected of a teenage girl.

"Still riding a Comet Two Sixty, Skyler? That's kind of sad," Cho sneered raising a perfectly waxed eyebrow at Cat's broom. One of her little cronies, Lauren Edwards, sniggered from behind her.

"My Firebolt's getting repairs right now, and I happen to like my Comet. We've become very close over these past few years," Cat said cheerily, sitting up and turning to her broom which lay on the bench beside her, "Haven't we Comet?" she said in a baby voice to her broom.

"Talking to your broom now, huh, Cat? You're more of nutter than I thought!" Ron laughed walking over and sitting down beside her.

"Yup! You should try it some time Ronald, it's quite entertaining!" she said with a bright smile.

"Um- hello there Clean Sweep, how are you doing today? Good? Oh well that's good, I'm fine myself. You know I'd really appreciate it if you flew a bit faster today, see this psycho chick named Catrina keeps out flying me and we can't have that can we?" Ron said to his broom.

"Oh Ron, stop encouraging her!" Cho snapped getting fed up with the whole situation.

"Don't listen to her Sweep, she's just a bitter old seeker" Ron cooed stroking his broom.

"_Arrgh_!" Cho yelled in a mix of annoyance and frustration before grabbing Lauren's wrist and marching her out of the locker room.

"What did you two do this time?" Harry asked suspiciously as Cho stomped past him. His emerald eyes landed on Cat and hardened slightly. A lump formed in Cat's throat, but she quickly swallowed it down.

"We were just having an innocent chat with our brooms and she got all '_Arrgh_'" Cat said with a shrug.

"It's true mate!" Ron declared.

Harry chuckled and shook his head at the two of them before walking over to his locker mumbling something that sounded like "_bunch of nutters_" under his breath.

"Alright, team!" came Alicia's captain's voice, "Let's give Ravenclaw all we got!"

Cat grinned to herself. Today she'd show Cho what she was made of.

"Alright, I want a nice clean game from both teams," said Madam Hooch. "Ready? Go!" She tossed the quaffle into the air and blew her whistle.

Immediately, Cat darted in and grabbed it, as smooth and confident as a jungle cat. _This_ was her element. Time to focus on the game, nothing else mattered at the moment. Not Cho. Not Harry. Just Quidditch.

"And Skyler snags the quaffle from the Ravenclaw chasers once again, leading them in circles around the field! Isn't she clever folks? Skyler's really on fire today!"

Harry watched Cat dash around the field, her blue eyes smirking as she nimbly dodged the Ravenclaw chasers. He couldn't help but admire her skill as she scored again and again. A stray red curl slipped out of her cap, reminding Harry of the last encounter they had had involving her hair.

He felt a blush stain his cheeks. He remembered how she looked that day, with her hair falling down around her, the strands caressing her bare shoulders revealed by her half-buttoned shirt. Her eyes had been all bright and shiny with anger while her face was flushed in anger. She had never looked prettier.

Even now, there seemed to be some kind of sparkle surrounding her as she sped across the field. Some aura of pure energy and enthusiasm that made her glow with natural beauty.

He shook his head in frustration and confusion at his own thoughts. He couldn't afford such thoughts about his best friend. Especially when she was behaving so strangely herself.

Harry was still a little cross about her refusal to open up to him and tell him what was wrong. She had seemed hurt by the look he gave her in the locker room. He didn't want to behave so coldly to her, but he had no choice! At least until she decided to stop being silly and just tell him what was up.

"And a Bludger plummets towards Potter who seems to be just floating there. Wake up Harry!"

Harry was shaken out of his disturbing thoughts as a Bludger attempted to take his head off. 'Gah! Gotta pay attention!' He turned his gaze from the redhead he had been following to look for the snitch.

Spotting it, he immediately went into a dive, racing towards the small golden ball. Suddenly, his path crossed with Cat's as she sped in front of him, chasing the quaffle.

As they locked gazes, Cat's face turned red for some unexplained reason. Harry just had time to open his mouth to say something, before she flew ahead, leaving him alone. He spared another glance towards the retreated redhead before he turned back to the front, only to realize the snitch had slipped out of his vision.

'Shit!'

Cat glanced behind her at the Boy-Who-Lived as she flew away. To her shame, she felt her face flush with embarrassment. She stopped in her flight and floated there in midair, just watching him. He caught her eyes again and she blushed, looking away quickly. God, she could barely stand to look at him after the dream she had the night before.

_"You should tell him, you know."___

Cat blinked and looked up sharply. Hermione. 'Crap, did she catch me staring?' "What?"

"Harry," Vanessa, a soft-spoken fourth year, added quietly, "you should tell him."

"Tell him? Tell him what?" Cat asked, plastering a confused expression on her face. Thoughts raced through her mind as fear clutched at her heart. 'They…know?' The idea sent a burst of red to her cheeks.

Lavender rolled her eyes in Cat's direction. "Jeez, give us some credit here! We're not blind! We see the way you stare at him. We see the way you practically swoon when he talks to you. Hell, we also see the way you undress him with your eyes during class."

If Cat wasn't blushing before, she certainly was now. "H-hey! I do not," she defended indignantly. "And I definitely don't stare at him – much less undress him with my gaze!"

The others stared, unconvinced.

"…You guys…"

Hermione frowned. "There's no use denying it. We know you're head over heels for him."

"Yeah," Lavender added, "if you'd just go get a spine and confess to him, you'd save us all the trouble of watching you, watching him with those googly eyes of yours. It's distracting, especially when you have that lovey-dovey-freshly-in-love face on all the time."

The others nodded.

"Bunch of conformists," Cat muttered.

Hermione nudged Vanessa, and she stepped forward, staring down at her entwined fingers timidly. "It's just that… It never… You never really…" She blushed. "You stare…a lot now," she finished with a nervous laugh.

Lavender stepped up next to Vanessa and stared down at Cat, resolved. "What Vanessa, here, meant to say is that this sexual tension between you and Harry is pretty damn annoying. It's thick enough to strangle a herd of cattle. If you like him so much, tell him and go get a room or something. Leave us civilians out of whatever you two are doing."

Cat gaped. "What the-? What the hell are you talking about? There's no sexual tension! And I never even said that I like him!" Tugging a few strands of her hair that had come loose from her hat in annoyance, she glared at her 'friends'.

Too bad they were just as obstinate as her. With a sigh, the three surrounded Cat and began whispering in hushed voices. "Look, there's no need to lie to us. We see. We hear. We know." They turned to stare at the object of her affection, who was chatting with Ron, the decoy. As if sensing their stares, Harry craned his neck towards her location and waved.

Cat grinned and waved back meekly, registering the heat rushing up to her cheeks and hating the knowing looks around her.

"…All right… So I do… It's just a little crush…"

"Little?" Lavender grabbed Cat's shoulders and shook her roughly. "You look like you're ready to grab that idiot over there and elope! If that's what you call a 'little crush,' I'd hate to see you in love!"

The other two gave Cat sympathetic stares. She sighed and slumped her shoulders in defeat. "Fine. It's not just a crush. I've liked him for a while now. Hell, if I could get myself alone with him, I'd profess my undying love for him. And even if he's unwilling, I'm going have his babies!"

The group stared at her, shocked into silence. Lavender looked unusually pale…and green. "Vanessa, hold me," she gasped out, stumbling into the equally stunned girl behind her. Cat silently patted herself on the back.

She blew her a raspberry. "I was just joking."

Hermione mumbled something under her breath, and Cat could've sworn that it sounded suspiciously like, "Like hell you are." Cat ignored her and turned to the other two.

Then, the scene had shifted to by the lake.

_Cat sat under the willow by the lake that the Professor had put in, a much calmer version of its 'Whomping' cousin. She watched the water turn red as the dawn cast its rosy glow over Hogwarts. She didn't question what she was doing up that early as she normally would have done. That should have been her first clue that this was a dream. She always slept as long as she could._

_"Cat."_

_The deep dusky, tone in his voice sent delicious thrills up her spine. "Harry."_

_He sat beside her and her heartbeat quickened. His arm slid around her waist, pulling her close. Her breath caught in her throat._

_"Cat, there's been something I've been meaning to ask you."_

_"Y-Yes?" she answered nervously. She examined his hand on her waist studiously, trying to ignore the racing of her heart. The fingers bore calluses on the pads from his years of Quidditch playing. His fingernails were cut short and clean, though one appeared to have been nibbled on a little bit._

_That hand grasped her chin and gently guided her head toward him until his gorgeous emerald blue locked with her own blue. Slowly, he tilted her head up while Cat's heart lept into her throat. Keeping his eyes looking deeply into her own, Harry brought her face closer to him until their mouths were mere centimeters from each other._

_"Cat." His breath brushed across her lips in a sweet caress. She trembled in anticipation. Anticipation of what she couldn't place. "God, Cat." He breathed. "I've been dying to ask you this, and I've finally worked up the courage to."_

_He took a deep breath. "Cat. Will you-"_

Then, she woke up. Evil Sun.

Cat sighed. It may have just been a dream, but she wanted to know what he had wanted to ask her.

A sharp pain sprouted from her head as the quaffle made contact. "Ouch!"

"Pay attention, Cat!" Alicia chastised the redhead. "This game is important!"

Cat caught Cho's smug smirk and she flew by and her eyes narrowed. Pulling a move she had seen in the game between Puddlemere and Bellycastle, she darted in between two Ravenclaw chasers, snagged the quaffle, and, for a little extra flare, flew by Cho at a speed that made her broom go into a tailspin. Only her deathgrip on the handle prevented her from going headfirst into the stands.

"Damn you Skyler!"

Cat just smiled sweetly. "Been there, done that, Chang." Then she looked at Harry again and nearly dropped the quaffle. He was floating by the stands, talking to the redhead from earlier. He hadn't seen. He wasn't even paying attention to the game! He was too busy flirting with _her_!

Her vision began to blur as tears fought to be released. Harry looked up and met her gaze before she looked away and flew to the goal as fast as she could. Arching her arm back, she threw the quaffle hard enough that it nearly flew out of the stadium.

She played the rest of the game as if under a spell. Every move carefully calculated as if someone else was controlling her. The passion was gone.

Her numb mind barely registered when Lee Jordan cried, "And Harry catches the Snitch! Gryffindor wins, 180-70! It's been a good season for Gryffindor, with the new addition of Catrina Skyler as a chaser, I swear the girl's a bloody genius, and Harry Potter as Seeker. Gryffindor may be in for an easy taking of the Quidditch Cup this year! Watch out!"

As she landed, she regained control of her senses as Ron attacked her.

"You were awesome today, Cat! Wow, I've never seen you that vicious with the quaffle before." His blue eyes were wide with awe in his freckled face. "I mean, it was like it had insulted you or something."

"Cat. Harry." Cat turned to Alicia as she was summoned. "I noticed a serious lack of concentration out on the field today. Now I want you both to solve whatever is wrong between the two of you, or leave it off the field, got it?"

Both she and Harry murmured their assent as Alicia nodded in satisfaction and left them.

Without so much as a glance at Cat, Harry started off the pitch. Cat ran to him.

"Harry."

He turned but didn't smile. His look seemed to be saying 'Say what you have to say and leave me alone'.

She tried her hardest to keep emotions in check, and damned if she'd let him see her cry again. Though, she couldn't stop her eyes from watering.

"I just wanted to say that I wanted to be your best friend again."

"How, Cat, when you can't even tell me what's wrong? We're supposed to have mutual trust."

"Harry—"

"Cat," he said with force. "You asked me the other day, 'Is my nose too big?'. Now you being... you, it confused me to death. And I wondered 'What the hell is she talking about?'. Then you got all uppity and started crying and for God sakes Cat, I had never seen you cry that easily. I mean you didn't even cry when you broke your leg last month. I was worried and you couldn't even tell me. I don't need you to tell me everything but when it's something that I cause or am around to see, you can't just hide. So it's up to you Cat."

Cat took a deep breath.

"Harry, I can't tell you. It's very, very personal. What if I promised, that when I get my head together, and I'm settled, I'll tell you what I've been afraid but anxious to tell you? I hope what I will have to say won't end our friendship. I just need some time."

Harry sighed. "Okay. All right? But I am not waiting forever for you to tell me so start building your strength."

A tremulous smile filled her face. "You're alright, Harry."

"Not too bad yourself Cat. Now I've got to go, I'm meeting this hot Ravenclaw chick up in the tower." He grinned at her, "I'll see you later."

And if he would have looked a moment longer, Harry would have seen on lonely tear fall down her unsmiling face.

Oh God! What was she going to do?

That question answered itself. Pray that Malfoy was good on his word.

KNY: Phew! One of the reasons it took me so long to get this out, was because originally, it was much longer than this. I just couldn't find a good stopping point. On the plus side, I have a good bit of the next chapter already written!


	6. And One Hell of an Explosion

KNY: Hi ho, all! I'm soooooooooooooooooooo sorry for the delay. Life has been insane lately, what with my trip to the Bahamas and actually having a social life (gasp, faint, die), not to mention getting a really _weird_ part in a play-

(Impatient yelling in the background from readers)

KNY: (eyes wide) Okay, okay, I'll get on with the fic! But fiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiirst... Replies to Reviewers!

(More angry yelling in background)

KNY: Sorry guys, it has to be done.

**Replies to Reviewers**

SGS: Sorry hun, you don't get Harry. ;) (hides from ninjas)

Kat O' Leary: Thank you so much my ever faithful reviewer! (huuuuuuuuuuge grin) I expect SGS and Kiki to review every chapter, I know them personally, but I really get a kick out of people I don't know staying with me through the whole story! (hugs)

this is how a heart breaks: Soooooooomebody's a Rob Thomas fan:) Thanks for the review.

Kiki: Here's your update, baka ferret. (ka-click) Prepare to die, ADD-rodent.

Disclaimer: Putting salt on the wound are we? Alright… I don't own Harry Potter or any of it's characters. If I did, there would be a few dramatic changes. Meh…

I Must Not Chase the Boys

Chapter 6: And One Hell of an Explosion

When Cat reached the tower, she raced to her dormitory, forcefully ignoring the female giggles coming from the boys' side.

'Damn, damn damn!' she thought, flopping down on her bed and punching the daylights out of her pillow. It was then that she noticed a necklace lying on her bedside table.

Curious, she picked it up and the note with it. It read: _For communication. Only you can read it. Draco_

'How… sweet?' Then, she glanced at the necklace and gave a low whistle. It was a small molded silver dragon holding a deep green stone. The whole pendant was slightly smaller than her palm.

'Communication?' Even as she mentally questioned it, silver words began appearing in the dark green jade.

_Meet me in the Room of Requirement at 7:00 tomorrow evening to begin your lessons. Draco_

Wondering how to respond, she tried simply willing the words to appear. That seemed to work, and a few minutes later, she had a message to send.

_I'll be there. Cat_

_P.S. Thanks again._

Immediately, an answer came from the Slytherin boy.

_No problem. ;) Draco_

Cat blinked. Did he just send her an emoticon? Oh well, no time to ponder it now, bedtime.

Harry caught up with Cat as she headed out of Gryffindor Tower the next day.

He grinned at her. "Hey Cat, what's going on? Wanna get some extra practice on Quidditch done?"

She bit her lip and sighed. She couldn't tell him anything, not yet. "Sorry Harry, I already have plans." She started to walk faster, but Harry changed his speed to match hers.

"Okay, what plans? I'll come with."

Cat sighed. "None of your business, sorry."

His eyes were no longer cheerful. "Why not?"

"Because," She stopped to glare at him. "I don't ask you your bloody plans every day so give me some space! You don't need to know every freakin' thing I do."

"I would tell you my plans if you asked me."

She stopped yet again, and eyed him, fury matching fury. "Look, I don't ask you, so for all the times that you had plans and I didn't ask…I would really, really like it if you returned the same courtesy. Thank you and good night!"

Harry laughed, and she grew angrier. She punched him in the stomach, than ran off. He stared after her. He frowned, wondering, 'Where's Cat going?'

Cat arrived at the Room of Requirement, 7 o'clock exactly; she smiled at her memorization skills from the one time she followed Harry and Co. there. When she knew nobody was looking, she knocked on the wall.

A short, curvy bronze-haired girl answered the door. Draco then appeared, nodding at her. He smirked and pulled her in quickly.

Cat looked around to see what they had imagined. There was a giant white couch to her right, and three other people, a blonde, the redhead, and a black-haired one, were sitting on it. She looked twice, just to make sure she saw right.

"Draco—what the hell?" she glared at him.

"Sorry, Catrina, my friends are coming to help me fix you up."

"Oh," Cat said. It would take more than just one boy to accomplish the miracle she was hoping for. She took a seat in the black armchair next to the couch. She sat back, watching the four pairs of eyes observing her equally.

The one with raven hair was watching her like a hawk, and Cat was growing irritated, so she stared back equally. Cat couldn't take this girl's stare any longer, it was starting to scare her.

"Look, Scarecrow will you keep your eyes of fury off me! They're starting to creep me out." Cat glared at her, and saw from the corner of her eyes, the blonde girl start to fidget nervously.

"Umm, girls—," Draco began.

"Drak, shut it!" The black haired girl said, she had a voice to match the fury Cat read in her eyes. Reflectively, she saw the other three back away. Okay, now she was starting to get really nervous.

"Look, I didn't mean it. And I can see that you're going to make a scene or something over a harmless comment so let's just cut the crap."

To Cat's utter bewilderment and chagrin, the ebony-haired girl laughed. It transformed her face making her exceptionally beautiful. Cat sighed. _If only I could look like that._

The blonde one noticed the look of wistfulness in Cat's eyes. That gave her determination to make things the way she wanted them to go. She took in Cat's customary hat, baggy shorts, and t-shirt. How long was her hair? She suspected it was short, hidden under that cap.

The bonze-haired one stood up, playing peacemaker and put herself between Cat and the black-haired girl. The tension was felt and the peacemaker put on her scolding voice that made the both of the other girls feel like children.

"Shouldn't we introduce ourselves first, Magiere? Cat doesn't know us."

The black-haired one, Magiere, laughed ruefully. "What? Do you want us to say, our names and favorite ice cream?"

Cat couldn't help but laugh too. Maybe she wasn't so bad. And, the joke was kind of funny although it seemed to bother the bronze-haired one. She kind of felt bad for her though, because she wasn't really accomplishing anything.

To her surprise, the short girl's voice came again with edges of steel. "My name is Arianna," she said forcefully, glaring at the black-haired girl, and then smiling at Car. Her eyes frosted to a light blue that had her a little uneasy. Then Ari smiled, and Cat let out another frustrated groan. Another supermodel. "And, my favorite ice cream is strawberry,"

Cat smiled and thought that it was a pretty nice crack for Ari over there.

The other girl with the head of glittering gold hair stretched out her long legs over the length of the white couch and closed her eyes. Cat would've sworn that the girl was a Gryffindor, but if that was true, what was she doing being in the same room with Draco, willingly?

"My name is Danica." She said, eyes closed, not paying much attention. "I've seen you play Quidditch and you're real good Cat, you don't mind if I call you that do you? Of course you don't. And I've seen you have mad skill in the sport."

"Um," Cat started, "Aren't you in Gryffindor?"

"Yeah. And?"

"It's just, I didn't expect anyone besides Slytherins to be here."

Danica snorted. "Well, I've learned that Draco over here isn't all bad, even if he does play Quidditch with that idiot--"

"Thanks Dani, so nice of you to introduce yourself, this is not the time to go off on a rant about Zane. Now Catrina, take off your hat," Draco pleasantly interrupted.

The change in conversation was so slick and clever that Cat found herself reaching for her hat without even thinking. She smiled at Draco, a knowing smile. "Ah. You almost got me there. I'm not taking off my hat and having you and your three supermodel friends laughing at my hair."

"Just take the damn thing off Birdbrain."

Cat glared at Magiere. "Where the hell do you come off calling me Birdbrain you overgrown hawk!"

Magiere's eyes glared maliciously. "You want me to come over there oh wise and strong one?" she mocked.

Cat glared with a malicious set of her own. "You can try!"

"Oh yeah?"

"Yeah, go ahead and do your best!" Cat stood up. Magiere stood up. They eyed each other like two animals about to battle.

"Be very afraid quaffle-head before I have to grab a stake and some garlic."

Cat lifted a sardonic eyebrow. "Oh, so is that what demons eat?"

Suddenly Magiere stood back and smiled. "You're not such a bad opponent," she said, then glared again, "now take off your hat," Then she took the hat off of Cat's head. It was so unexpected; she stood there like a deer in headlights. She flushed bright pink.

There was a simultaneous gasp from the crowd as her long red hair fell from the cap. It was shiny and fell in waves to the middle of her thighs.

"OH! And I thought that your hair was short!" came Draco's awed voice, followed by a low whistle.

"Why do you wear that stupid cap? It doesn't even look halfway decent," said Magiere angered. She had also thought there was something wrong with Cat's hair. Why else would she wear a stupid hat?

"Your hair blends in well. You look real exquisite with your hair exempted of that discolored hat. I am almost speechless," this came from Danica.

"WOW! How did you fit all that under that small cap Cat?" Came from Ari, "I mean I've seen you play Quidditch, but I never expected this,"

Cat looked at each of them as if they were crazy.

"You don't have to lie. We're supposed to help each other." She spoke as if she was talking to a kindergartener. "My hair is okay. That's it. It didn't mix well with my boys' image. But look at how it doesn't' work with my face, my nose it too big and off center, my ears are too small and my mouth is way too big."

Danica and Magiere exchanged looks and this made Cat nervous. Draco lounged back on the couch, groaning, and closing his eyes.

"She's so clueless." He muttered and Cat thought that he went to sleep.

Ari said determinedly to Cat. "It seems to me," He said with a raise of his eyebrow and a smile, "that you are lacking self confidence Catrina. Considering how hard you try at being a guy, it goes beyond me," she said in a bland English accent. It mixed badly with her Irish one. She had her nose upturned and reminded Cat of Cho, holding her nose to something foul.

Cat looked at Ari blankly.

"What's with the accent?"

Ari blushed and averted her head. "I was practicing for my acting career." She muttered and walked away blushing.

Danica spoke up, obviously sensing the ruffles in the water. "She is saying that your lack of self confidence contradicts with the confidence you muster in your portrayal of a man, assuming boyish qualities."

Cat looked at Danica blankly.

"Would somebody speak some friggin' English here? One speaks 'High-Class-Idiot' and the other speaks 'Dictionary'."

"What Danica and Ari are trying to say is that you don't have any self confidence and because guys are so pigheaded and stubborn and you hang out with them all of the time, it's hard to see how you don't have any confidence," explained Draco startling Cat since she thought that he was sleeping.

Cat looked at Draco, knowing this time that he wasn't sleeping. "Thanks for the translation."

Magiere stood up. "Now Miss Tomboy, it's time for us to get started."

"Wha-?" Cat didn't have time to get more than that out before Danica suddenly whipped out a tape measure and began calling out the measurements to Ari who then wrote them down.

"Hips: 36". Waist: 24". Bust:-"

"Yeeeeeeeeees?"

"None of your business, Malfoy!"

Said Slytherin snickered and sprawled on the black leather chair, his left leg hanging over the armrest. Magiere walked over to a door that suddenly appeared in the wall and opened it, disappearing inside. After several moments, she reappeared clutching a mass of blue and black cloth in her arms.

"Here," she said, shoving her armload at Cat, "Try this on."

"Um… where?" Cat asked tentatively, poking her head around the pile.

Wordlessly, Magiere pointed at another door that had appeared.

"Oh, okay." Cat then vanished inside the training room. Several minutes passed.

"Um, Cat?" Dani called, "Are you still alive in there?"

A muffled "Mmph!" came in response followed by a thump.

Ari sighed. "I'll go help her." And she walked into the dressing room to assist the struggling Cat.

Draco turned towards Magiere, raising an eyebrow. "What kind of outfit did you pick for her?"

The raven-haired girl merely smirked. "You'll see."

Soon, Ari emerged and joined the rest of them. "She's all straightened out."

"What was wrong?" Dani inquired.

"She had trouble with the laces."

"Laces?"

Ari opened her mouth to answer Draco's question, when the dressing room door swung open, answering it for her. Draco let out a low whistle.

Cat turned bright red from where she stood on the hardwood floor. She wore a black, off-the-shoulder undershirt that fell to her hands in beautiful bell sleeves. Over that was a cotton overdress shaded a deep blue to match her eyes and accent the redness of her hair which fell down her back in loose crimson curls. It was sleeveless and incredibly stretchy, clinging to her torso like a second skin. The dress fell to her ankles with slits up to a little above the knee, letting the material fall straight. The bodice was created out of beautifully worked black leather with a lace-up front. Black fishnet stockings covered her legs underneath a pair of black leather knee-high boots. A blue scarf covered her head in a rougish fashion, looking vaguely pirate-y. Large silver hoops dangled from her ears adorned with silver coins making them jingle every time she moved her head. Lastly, a small silver sword rested on her collarbone, hanging from a choker around her neck.

Magiere nodded in approval. "Yep. I like that one."

"I agree," Dani stated, "Not tomboy, but not to girly-girl either. More like biker-babe chic."

"You look good, Cat," Ari complemented the red-head, smiling softly.

"T-Thanks," Cat answered, smiling nervously. She met Draco's gaze wanting his opinion. The Slytherin Prince simply smirked and let out another low, wolf whistle, causing poor Cat to turn bright red once more.

"That one's definitely a keeper," Magiere said, getting to her feet and returning to the other room where she had gotten the outfit.

"No she's not," Dani replied cheekily, she and Ari following Magiere, "She's a chaser."

Cat began walking back towards the changing room, when she felt a hand brush along her bum. Her eyes widened and her jaw dropped slightly. She turned around slowly, "Draco?"

"Yes?"

"Did you just touch my bum?"

"I touched your bum," he said with a nod.

"You touched my _bum_!"

"I touched your bum!" he proclaimed.

"Draco, Dani wants to know-

Ari had come up from behind, unaware of the situation at hand.

"Nnghhf! He touched my bum!" Cat exclaimed, pointing an accusing finger at Draco.

"You touched her bum!"

"Now, is this the part where I break out in song?" asked Draco thoughtfully.

"Psha!" Cat scoffed, pointing her wand at him.

"Ah, ah, ah, no magic in this room," he grinned.

Cat glared and kicked him on his shin, the natural instincts of a female kicking in. He yelped and grabbed for his leg.

She turned to go, and saw Ari's Ravenclaw prefect badge on her robes.

"Oh hell, you're a prefect..." Cat said wide-eyed.

"I saw nothing," she grinned.

Cat smiled, "Neither did I."

The next day found Cat walking to potions with Danica, with whom she had become fast friends.

"So Zane Cobriana is your little stalker?" Cat teased her golden-haired friend lightly.

"Ugh! And he is _such_ a pain!" Dani snorted emphatically. Zane Cobriana was a Slytherin in their year, and more snakelike than your average Slytherin, but in a good way. He had long, perfectly straight black hair tied back in a low horsetail. His eyes were a deep red, naturally colored that way, and his pale skin made them stand out all the more.

"I dunno," Cat answered in mock seriousness, "I think he's kinda cute…"

"Please, I beg of you, take him away!" exclaimed Dani dramatically, "I got 5 boxes of chocolate and strawberries from him this summer."

"You didn't throw them away did you!" Cat gasped. Strawberries she could trust. They did not womanize her. They did not call her darling, or talk to her for that matter, unless they were coated with Erlenmeyer's Chocolate, which had alcohol in it, in which, yes, then they did seem to talk to her. Strawberries were her only love.

"No I didn't," Dani answered, sighing. "You may have them. I'll give them to you when we get back to the dorm, okay?"

"Yay!" Cat caught the surprised blonde in a bone-crushing bear hug. "Thank you!" And with one last happy squeal, she let go and bounced into Potions followed by Dani, shaking her head ruefully.

Meanwhile, just a few dozen feet behind them walked the little Gryffindor trio that Cat was normally with.

Ron was bugging Hermione about the homework they had the night before, but Harry remained strangely silent, lost in his own thoughts.

Why had Cat brushed him off like that? What was so important and secret that she didn't want to tell _him_? Her best friend? She hadn't come back until late last night and she had a plastic bag clutched in her hand. She was also humming and grinned broadly in an almost dazed manner. What could be the cause of her odd change in attitude?

A sudden thought crossed his mind. 'Did she get a boyfriend?' For some reason the prospect filled him with a strange mix of jealousy and a feeling of hollowness. Then he shook his head. 'Nah, this is _Cat_ we're talking about.' So with that uplifting thought in mind, he walked into Potions, only to feel that sharp pain return.

Cat hadn't saved a seat for him like she always did. Instead she was sitting with that Danica Shardae girl. He felt his gaze sharpen into a glare as he noticed two particular Slytherins seated behind his friend: Cobriana and Malfoy.

Malfoy noticed his gaze and nudged his black-haired friend. Cobriana blinked for a moment, unsure of why the blonde Slytherin elbowed him, then saw Harry and raised an eyebrow in question. Malfoy whispered something that caused Cobriana to snicker, roll his eyes and go back to staring at Shardae.

Malfoy then met Harry's glare and smirked. He glanced at Cat, who had just laughed at something Shardae had said, and his cold blue eyes acquired a predatory gleam. Harry felt hot anger fill his chest at the look Malfoy was sending her. Every nerve in his body wanted to wring the snake's neck then and there. His hands twitched.

A touch on his shoulder brought him back to reality. "Harry?" Ron said hesitantly, nervous at the look of fury on his friend's face. "We probably should take our seats…"

Harry nodded tersely and turned away, forcefully ignoring the triumphant look on Malfoy's face.

Zane was staring at Dani, who was sitting in the front of the class. She tapped her quill against her lips, suddenly stopped, and slowly looked behind her at Zane. A look of disgust fell upon her face, and she rolled her eyes, facing the front again.

Seeing this, Draco smirked and scribbled down a message to Zane on a spare piece of parchment.

_I should take pointers from you.  
Teach me your ways._

He tossed it towards Zane and soon received a reply of:

_Fuck off, you sod._

Draco smirked again and glanced over at Cat, jotting down a message

_Hey._

Cat jumped when it flew to her head and furrowed her eyebrows in puzzlement, picking it up off the floor. She turned her head to see Draco doing an unconvincing impression of being innocent. She was surprised he had written her a note, but replied anyway.

_CLASS._

**fling  
**  
_I am aware. _

**fling  
**  
_CLASS._

**fling  
**  
_You__ kid!_

Cat sighed and crumbled up the note pushing it aside and continued to drum her fingers. But that, of course, wouldn't stop Draco Malfoy.

_You're not even listening._

_Draco, I'm feeling a tad annoyed with you now. _

_Moi?_ (me?)

_Oui. _(you.)

_Non! _(No!)

_I tell you no lies._

_That hurts very badly. Turn around and look into my most charming eyes; do you not see the tears of anguish and despair?_

_Is that what they are?_

_Marry me Cat, we can run away and live in my dormitory._

Cat flushed with embarrassment. Was he flirting with her? After a moment, she wrote back a similar reply.

_Your dormitory?__ How tempting…_

_Of course it is! I live there after all!_

Cat rolled her eyes at his cocky behavior, when Snape's cold voice was directed at her.

"Am I to assume you are taking notes on my lecture, Miss Skyler?"

"No professor. I'm not."

As soon as she said this, she heard people around the room suck in their breaths in anticipation of another verbal sparring match between the two.

'Who's afraid of the big bad potions master?' she mentally sang. She held her head high and gave him a cocky look. He looked so enraged, that Cat had to keep from laughing to his face.

"Tell me, Miss Skyler, what would you get if you mixed a drought of wolfsbane and dried monkswood?" he asked.

It wasn't not a very common question in potions. Mostly, students learned how to mix things. They didn't really learn what would happen if they mixed certain potions together. Cat happened to know because she and the boys had done their own little experiments.

"A concoction capable of giving the drinker temporary wolf-like qualities," she answered, textbook-perfect. Then she grinned cheekily.

"And one hell of an explosion."

* * *

KNY: And there you have it, my new chapter:) I thank everyone for their patience with me, I have ADD regarding my fanfiction and fanart. (sighs) Maybe I'll post some of the one-shots I have been writing in the meantime... Anyway, I promise that I will NOT stop this fanfic, "Runnin' With My Loverbeast" or "Earthbound Goddess" until they are done! (trimphant pose) (slips and falls on face) Owiee... :'( (cries)

Draco: (rolls eyes) Quit being a moron and close out the chapter.

KNY: (sniffles) Meanie. You're just mad that I made you a bit of a perv in this chapter.

Draco: Woman... (eyebrow twitch)

KNY: (eyes widen and starts crying again)

Harry: Quit picking on her, Malfoy!

KNY: (sniffles again) Thanks Harry. Would you mind closing us out?

Harry: (pats her head) Sure. Read and Review everyone, please!

KNY: You too, Ghost Readers! I SEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE YOOOOOOOOOOOOOU!


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